Container for a cartridge belt



Jan. 27, 1959 J. LINKE CONTANER FOR A CARTRIDGE BELT Filed May 26, 1958T57/ LUM,

United States Patent O CONTAINER FOR A CARTRIDGE BELT Johannes Linke,Zurich, Switzerland, assignor to Machine Tool Works, Oerlikon,Administration Company, lZurich-Oerlikon, Switzerland, a company ofSwitzerlll Application May 26,1958, Serial No. 737,910

Claims priority, application Switzerland June 18, 1957 2 Claims. (Cl.89-34) The invention relates to a container for a cartridge belt forautomatic weapons stored in zig-zag layers, said container havingcompartments separated from one another by partition walls, wherein thecartridges lie parallel to a vertical plane including the axis of theweapon.

Such containers, hereinafter referred to as belt boxes, are known inthemselves. In the embodiments which have become known, in which thecartridges lie in the box in the manner described, the accommodation ofthe store of ammunition either requires much space in a directionperpendicular to the axis of the weapon or, with a given space, setsnarrow limits to the quantity of ammunition which can be stored.

In order to overcome these disadvantages it has already been proposed tostore the cartridges at right angles to the axis of the weapon, and todivert the cartridge belt 90 in a belt supply conduit before introducingthe same into the weapon. This sharp deflection of the belt gives,however, often rise to break-downs in the supply.

It is the principal object of the present invention to provide acontainer for a cartridge belt which affords ample storage space withoutrequiring much space in the direction perpendicular to the axis of thefirearm, and at the same time obviating any substantial deflection ofthe cartridges from their position parallel to the axis of the firearm.

With this and other objects in view, which will become apparent from thefollowing description and accompanying drawing, I provide a containerfor a cartridge belt of an automatic firearm, comprising in combination:end walls, side walls, a bottom and a top, parti tion walls dividing thecontainer into separate compartments, passages for the belt beingarranged in the side walls of adjacent compartments on the same sidethereof alternately near the top and bottom thereof, and an obliqueconduit lining up the said passage near the bottom of one compartmentwith the said passage near the top of the adjacent compartment, the saidcartridge belt being folded zig-zag fashion in each compartment with thecartridges substantially parallel to a vertical plane containing theaxis of the said firearm, and being passed from one compartment to thenext adjacent compartment through the said passages and conduitconnecting the same.

The belt can accordingly be conducted to the weapon substantiallywithout change of direction of the cartridges. The belt box according tothe invention may be used for example for the storing of the cartridgebelt on its way to an automatic firearm which is mounted on an annularturntable gun mounting built into a vehicle in which the ammunition hasto be accommodated primarily Within one half of the cylindrical spacebounded by the annular turntable, alongside the weapon.

In the drawing an embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way ofexample.

y 2,870,681 Patented Jan. 27, 1959 ICC Fig. 1 shows the belt boxtogether with the gun, in plan view.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the belt box.

Fig. 1 is the rotary ring of the upper gun mounting, on which the weapon2 is mounted in a manner not shown in detail, is denoted by 1. The uppergun mounting is rotatable together with the weapon about the verticalazimuth laying axis Z. Y is the elevation laying axis of the gun. Fromthe belt box 4 lixedly connected to the upper gun mounting the cartridgebelt 5 is passed into the belt feeder device 3 of the weapon 2. The freespace on the left hand side between the weapon and the annular turntableis occupied by the gunner.

According to Fig. 2 the belt box -according to the invention is arectangular container which is subdivided by the partition wall 6 intothe two compartments 4a and 4b, the compartment 4a being made forexample wider at the bottom than at the top, for enlarging the usefulspace thereof. In the walls 7 and 8 lying on the same side of the beltbox slot-shaped passages 9 and 10 for the cartridge belt are providedparallel to the bottom of the box, namely in the wall 7 near the bottomand in the wall 8 near the top. From the lower passage 9 of thecompartment 4a a conduit 11 is passed obliquely to the upper passage 10of the compartment 4b. This conduit is straight at its middle portionand curved towards the passages 9 and 10, and runs out tangentiallytowards the frontand rear-edges of the box. The orice 15 of the beltoutlet conduit 14 leading from the belt box compartment 4a upwardlyrises towards the front. ln the interior of the compartments, behind thepassages 9 and 10, deflector rollers 12 and 13 for the cartridge beltare arranged, which are journalled on axes parallel to these passages.

In the Fig. 2 the connecting line of the centers of the cartridgescombined in a belt is indicated in chain-dotted lines, and the storingof the belt is illustrated diagrammatically. When loading the belt box,the belt S is put into loose zig-zag layers beginning at the bottom ofthe rear compartment 4b and extending over the full width of thecompartment in such a manner that the cartridges point their projectilesforward and the axes of the projectiles lie parallel to the side wallsof the belt box. From the uppermost layer the belt runs over thedeflector roller 13, through the conduit 11, through the passage 9 andover the deflector roller 12 into the compartment 4a where it is putinto loose zig-zag layers just as in the compartment 4b, and after itsuppermost layer, it is passed through the outlet passage 14 to the beltfeeder device 3 of the weapon.

When firing, the compartments of the belt box are emptied in the inverseorder of loading the same. When the compartment 4a is empty, the: partof the belt stored in the compartment 4b is discharged through theconduit 11, the belt after the deflector roller 12 being pulled directlyupward into the outlet conduit 14.

Instead of as described hereinabove with reference to the embodimentillustrated, the belt box may alternatively be composed of more than twocompartments arranged one behind the others. For example a thirdcompartment 4c is indicated in thin lines in Fig. 2. In this case anentrance passage 16 has to be provided in the side wall of thecompartment 4b and an outlet passage 17 in the side wall 18 of thecompartment 4c, lying on the same side. The belt is piled up in zig-zaglayers in the compartment 4c as in the compartments 4a and 4b, and ispassed through a conduit from the outlet passage 17 of the compartment4c to the entrance passage 16 of the compartment 4b. The two passagescould obviously be provided alternatively in the other side walls of thebelt box. It is only essential that the outlet passage of onecompartment lies on the same side as the entrance passage of theadjacent preceding compartment.

Since the outlet orice of the conduit 14, which lies on the side of thebelt boX facing away from the weapon, rises forwardly, the belt istwisted but little at a medium elevation of the weapon, between thisoutlet orice and the belt feeder device 3 of the weapon.

While I have described herein and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing what may be considered a typical and particularly usefulembodiment of my said invention, I wish it to be understood that I donot limit myself to the details and dimensions described andillustrated; for obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled inthe art.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A container for a cartridge beltof an automatic rearm, comprising incombination: end walls, side walls,

a bottom and atop, partition walls dividing the container into separatecompartments, passages for the belt being arranged in the side walls ofadjacent compartments on the same side thereof alternately near the topand the bottom thereof, and oblique conduits lining up the said passagesnear the bottom of one compartment with the said passages near the topof the adjacent compartment, the said cartridge belt being foldedzig-zag fashion in each compartment with the cartridges substantiallyparallel to a vertical plane containing the axis of the said firearm,and being passed from one compartment to the next adjacent compartmentthrough the said passages and conduits connecting the same.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1, comprising deflector rollers forthe cartridge belt journalled in the said compartments adjacent the saidpassages.

No references cited.

